>> "bbc world news" is presented by kcet, los angeles. funding for this presentation is made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you?

>> and now, "bbc world news." >> face-to-face talks between israeli and palestinian leaders. the americans call for historic compromise. >> mr. prime minister, mr. president -- you have the opportunity to end this conflict and the decades of enmity between your peoples once and for all. >> welcome to close "bbc world news " -- broadcast to our viewers on pbs in america and also around the globe. coming up later for you, their first hot meal in nearly a month, but hope of being rescued is delayed for chile's trapped miners. the engineers have hit a snag. scientist stephen hawking declares the creation of the universe did not depend on god. and what was a byword for intoxicating glitz and glamour, this is my in to win back its place as top european film

festival. -- venice is trying to win back its place as top european film festival. israel and the palestinians have been holding their first direct negotiations in nearly two years in washington. the american middle east envoy, senator george mitchell, says talks so far have been constructive. he said the two sides have agreed to meet again in two weeks, and it would work toward reaching a framework agreement first. our middle east editor from washington. >> the two sides' motorcades brought them into the state department in washington for the latest installment in what has turned into a 20-year middle eastern saga of lost hope. not surprising then that in the public part of the meeting, they were all careful to say that negotiations to make peace a year from now would not be easy. the americans plan always to be

inside the room or hovering close by. their top diplomat said there was no time to lose. >> the core issues at the center of these negotiations -- territory, security, jerusalem, refugees, settlements, and others -- will get no easier if we wait, nor will they resolve themselves. >> prime minister netanyahu said president abbas would have to recognize israel as the jewish homeland. he said the middle east was changing and so were the securities israel would need. >> we have had the rise of iran and its properties and the rise of missile warfare. so a peace agreement must take into account security arrangements against these real threats. >> the prospect of new buildings were jews in the occupied territories is the first crisis of the talks. despite an official construction freeze, sellers work today in

protest of the killing of four settlers by hamas this week. israel says it will not renew the freeze when it ends in about three weeks. this is the land in gaza and the west bank that the palestinians want in their state. israel has suggested build on the occupied land it plans to keep. its biggest settlement blocks, including those in east jerusalem. jewish building elsewhere in the territories would then be restricted while they negotiate. but the palestinians want to stop all settlement activity, which breaks international law. president abbas says he will walk away from the talks if the construction freeze is not extended. >> we call on the israeli government to move forward with its commitment to end all settlement activities and completely lifted the embargo when we guard the strip. >> if this one fails, next time it will be harder. the conflict is changing. it is no longer simply

nationalists fighting over land. a religious war is being crafted steadily on to that. back of the ground, there are people on both sides who think they are doing god's will. >> at home, mr. netanyahu opposes government includes ministers who do not want what they called jewish land to good palestinians. mr. abbas cannot speak for all his people. hamas, which condemns his presence here, controls gaza. they all looked relaxed as the journalists were ushered out. they will not be behind closed doors. >> now look at some of the other top news stories of the day. suspension by the international cricket council. the icc says it has charged three players of various offenses under its anti- corruption code. earlier, pakistan's most senior diplomat in the u.k. said he

believes the three were entirely innocent. the world bank has raised the amount it is offering to help deal with the flooding in pakistan to $1 billion. earlier, the international red cross want that resentment was growing toward aid workers as people became increasingly desperate. staff have tries been forced to abandon distribution of food supplies because of angry crowds. fire on board and oil plant in the gulf of mexico is now out, and all 30 workers on board our state. there's also no evidence that no oil has leaked into the sea, despite reports of a sheen on the water. have been off the coast of louisiana and the west of where a bp rig explosion in april. large cues have formed outside branches of afghanistan's main commercial bank because of fears about its solvency. the governor of the country's central bank says customers -- some customers had problems withdrawing the money, but he said the bank was providing more cash to reassure depositors that their money was indeed safe.

the 33 miners trapped underground in chile have had their first hot meal in 26 days. nasa scientists have also arrived at the mine to offer advice on keeping the mind is healthy. there has been a setback, however, in their rescue. after a fall in the rocks meant the drilling had to be halted. our correspondent, james reynolds, is at the mine. there, he spoke to a woman whose fiancee is trapped in the mind. >> a lot of the families live here. our next guest is the fiancee of a 34-year-old. they have two kids together. how are things? >> we are well. we are happy, very happy. >> you were able to speak to them on the phone. >> yes, on sunday, we spoke on the phone.

>> what did he say? >> he told me, and " how are you? how are the girls?" i told him they were well. he asked how the family was, and i told him the we were waiting for him, and he said to not leave him alone. i told him he just had to have patience. and he said that i had to be patient. they know they have to be patient down there, but i had to be patient for the rest of the family. >> i understand that you are now engaged, and that has happened since he was trapped in the mind. can you explain how that happened? >> what happened is this -- when they told me we could write letters, i wrote in my first letter, "i want to marry you. i know i turned you down a couple of months ago, but i feel that more than ever before, we need to stick together."

so i said that, and i was worried he might say no because i turn him down before. at top he might say that he was not at my beck and call because he can be bad tempered, but he wrote back, "we're going to get married as soon as i get out of here." i have the letter at home. otherwise i would show it to you so you could see it. >> as soon as he gets out, you are going to get married? >> yes, we are only waiting for him to come out and get a little bit better, and then, we are off to the registry office. >> we wish you a lot of luck. australia is edging closer to a new government after last month's inconclusive elections. the. mp for tasmania has said he will back the labor leader and not the conservative from sydney. phil mercer reports. >> australia's governing labor

party is a step closer to retaining power, thanks to a former intelligence analyst. andrew willkie is one of four onemp's who will decide -- one of four mp's who will decide who forms the governor. labor is still two short but is now the bookmakers' favorite to win this tight race against the conservative operation. mr. wilke is urging his fellow kingmakers to make up their minds sooner rather than later. >> i would hope that this sends a signal to the other three independents and the move as quickly as they can to make their decisions and to decide to support a party or parties in a way which will bring maximum stability. >> the prime minister has also struck a deal with the greens as she tries to build a minority government. the price will be concessions on climate change policy while

securing the support of a key independent eases labor just ahead of opposition. >> i thank mr. wilke for the decency and diligence with which he has negotiated this agreement. i thank him for bearing in mind at all stages the national interest. >> he could still go horribly wrong for labor, should that group of three independent mp's decide to back the conservative. the way, it seems australia's wait for a new government is coming to an end, following the closest the election results in the country's history. >> the u.s. president, barack obama, has warned americans to prepare for the worst as hurricane earl approaches the east coast of the u.s. thousands of residents have been moved from their homes. despite the hurricane weakening slightly, forecasters say it's

top winds are still close to 125 miles an hour. >> conditions here have changed pretty dramatically over the last few hours. you can see the certification behind me is really picking up power and ferocity as the storm gets ever closer. the winds are still around 145 miles an hour, but the latest forecasts say the storm could swap the coast line here and head of north. that is slightly good news, but they also say there is a chance for the western i of that storm to make impact just north of my position here in north carolina. that would bring with it those powerful winds, the chances of huge floods, but president for rob obama telling millions of americans now to track the storm very carefully and watch and wait and see what happens. there are warnings in place now from south carolina all the way up to massachusetts, covering a huge swath of the eastern seaboard. there's a chance the storm could carry on up to places like long island and even deadly populated areas like boston, so people are

watching this storm very carefully now. >> you are watching "bbc world news." still to come -- getting in on the act. the new touch screen computers that have been rushed to the market. in mozambique, the government says a 30% increase in the price of bread will not be reversed. that comes amid a second day of rights, which have now claimed at least seven lives. another 288 people have been injured in the demonstration against the rising cost of living. water and food prices have also gone up. the army has now been deployed. >> the people of mozambique have been pushed to their limit. they are angry at the rising cost of living. the price of bread controlled by the government has gone up by 30%. water and fuel have also become more expensive. the result is riots on the

streets of the capital. after the authorities blocked off many of the roads, the situation has been calmer on thursday. many people are scared to leave their homes, but somehow still venture out to throw stones at police and burned tires in anger. on wednesday, six people were killed. shops were looted and buses and trains hours were destroyed. in a bid to bidcalm, -- in a bid to restore calm, the government has deployed the army amid an announcement that the price increases will not be reversed. state media say the president is working to address the country's food production problems. more than half of mozambique's 22 million population live on less than $1 a day and can scarcely afford any increases in the cost of living.

two years ago, riding cost the government to abandon plans to increase fuel prices. it appears that a similar reversal this time is unlikely, so tensions may well remain high. >> this is "bbc world news." israeli and palestinian leaders meeting in washington for the first face-to-face talks in two years. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton calling it an important step towards peace. for more on that story, joining us from washington is stephen hadley, who served as national security adviser under president george bush and is now a senior adviser at the united states institute of peace. some people in the process today are saying they can wrap it up in the year. one wants to say, "hang on, guys, this is the middle east." >> that is certainly right.

there is a sorry history of deadlines and time horizons in the middle east, but i think what is interesting is that the parties this time, both israelis and palestinians, particularly israelis, who have been especially suspicious of deadlines, actually have all agreed that ought to try the to do this in the year, and i think it indicates an awareness by everybody that there is a window of opportunity to do this, and that if it is not down in a fairly constrained time, there is a risk that violence could once again overwhelm the peace process. >> you used the phrase with no opportunity. i think it was james baker back in madrid in the early 1990's who originally coined the phrase that memory is correct, but there are so many unknowns, so many bits and pieces that the israeli government and the palestinian government do not control. how does the u.s. keep it on track? >> the terrorists always have a vote, and the trick is to make sure they have a vote, not a veto.

that is why it is so important today and yesterday that the israeli prime minister, president abbas, and president of all condemned the terror attacks in israel and made clear that that was not going to be real the peace process. that is very important. second, there has been a lot of work done on the issues about borders, security, right of return in the clinton talks at camp david, and the annapolis process under president bush, so there is the opportunity for the parties to build on that. in some sense, there is a lot already in place in terms of outlining the terms of a final settlement. >> when you talk about different parties having a vote, if we extract what they have done so far, every major peace process worldwide ultimately has come down to governments talking to people that they do not like the idea of talking to. >> yes and no. at this point, people would be

very comfortable talking to hamas, but at this point, hamas is not willing to participate in the peace process. they have basically opposed the peace process and support terror and violence, and i think the way that the opportunity is available to deal with the issue of hamas is to get a peace agreement that involves the palestinian state and let president abbas go to hamas and say, "we have a palestinian state. are you in or out? depending on the answer that hamas makes, that the palestinians living in gaza will have their choice. do they want to continue to live under very difficult situation under hamas, or do they want to join their palestinian brothers in the west bank and have a hopeful state? in some sense, getting an agreement and getting an agreement on the palestinian state is a way to bridge the divide between the divisions within the palestinian community. >> good to talk to you. thank you for your time, mr.

hadley. it has no proper keyboard, it does not make phone calls, and you cannot put it in your pocket. the apple ipad had no shortage of skeptics before it was launched, but since then, the device has been selling as fast as apple can make it, so it is no surprise the rest of the industry wants to get in on that act. >> when it comes to a shiny new gadgets, one company has been king for a decade. first, apple's ipod. then it's iphone. now, the ipad have persuaded millions to part with their cash. but other big names in the gadget world believe apple has got away far too long with selling devices that are overpriced and only appealed for their looks rather than their technology. in berlin, they are facing a fight back. >> as one of the world's biggest gadget shows gets under way, samsung is first out of the block with a new tablet computers. remind you of anything? yes, it does look like a smaller

ipad, but this one runs with rival google android software. unlike apple was a product, this one can take pictures as well, but here is the key question -- is it going to be cooler than the ipad, though? >> the design, portability, functionality of the device. >> it has taken apple's rivals some time to hit back. with total sales of 275 million, the ipod dominates the mp3 player market. its nearest rival, sandisk, has a tiny share appeared with a 50 million people have an iphone, but google android phones are beginning to overtake apple, and more than 3 million ipads have been sold, but this time, rivals like samsung have been quicker to respond your web technology blogger thinks other firms have learned a key lesson from apple. >> they are trying to represent this sexy lifestyle.

everything just seems so easy once you get out of the box. it just works, and that is something that apple has been offering for years. >> toshiba has also unveiled an ipad-look alike. plenty of tablet computers in all shapes and sizes, but they have one thing in common -- just about all of them are likely to be much cheaper than apple's ipad. >> did the universe need a creator? not according to world-renowned physicist and mathematician stephen hawking. he says that god was the necessary for the creation of the world. he claims that the big bang theory for creation of the world can now be explained by science alone. >> is the most fundamental and device above questions -- how did it all begin? -- devices -- did this if -- divisive of questions. stephen hawking things got was not needed to get the process

going, and tonight, he read us the key conclusion of his book. >> with laws such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing. it is not necessary for attached to set the of is going. >> the latest theory is that our universe is just one of many, and the laws of physics must mean that countless other universes' were formed before the big bang. would god have done all that just to create us? the traditional religious view is that it took divine intervention at the very least to started all. scientists accept that the theory is controversial. >> many physicists would address that we are now addressing questions that not long ago were beyond the realm of silence, and what we're doing inevitably is pushing religion on to the back foot, so the questions were only religion could offer an answer,

science is now doing that as well. >> so what is the religious reaction? some groups say this is part of an atheist campaign. the church of england, though, says it will not undermine faith. >> science can never prove the non-existence of god, just as it can never prove the existence of god. faith is a matter outside that, but as i look at the universe and as many people who are much more understanding of cosmology that might in mathematics, as they look at it, they see a universe which is still very coherent with what we believe about god and his nature. >> so how serious a challenge is this to religious faith? stephen hawking himself admits that the theory that there are multiple universes' is still just a theory. it is yet to be confirmed by any evidence. which may leave many believing that science has not got all the answers yet.

>> europe's oldest film festival is trying to regain its prestige after losing out to some of its competitors. the first time the event in venice has begun by showing 3 opening night films. >> she is the most reticent of film stars. images of natalie portman have gone global after the world premiere of "black swan," but this was not the only film premiere of the evening. jessica alba was also present for a screening of the violent latin american romp "machete." >> this is the most beautiful place i have ever been made. weather during the day or at night, it is unreal. it is stunning, breathtaking. you cannot even believe -- i cannot believe i'm here. >> in fact, that is premiered three movies on its opening

night, trying to appeal to hollywood, asia, and latin america. quentin tarantino is the head of the jury. everything is designed to make maximum impact. >> to get celebrities is very important because everyone likes to see the stars on the red carpet talking to the press, chatting, looking to promote their films, showing they are interested. when they do not turn up, there is not that much to say. you're just talking about films and talking heads, and it is not that interesting. >> because, like its city setting, the festival reflects past glory, years before george clooney takes part, at some shares parties and premiers were films like "casanova." now the expenses -- no longer seem vital to a marketing campaign. >> they still give this kind of

prestige, but as it is finding out, there are plenty of pretenders' willing to steal its clientele. >> i have the craziest dream last night that a girl was turned into a swan. >> most of the films will go on to toronto next week, a 30-year- old festival which, thanks to its proximity to hollywood, has a formidable reputation with the market with venice tonight losing out. >> there are a lot of films who then choose to have a big impact, a big splash on our red carpet, and then proceed to toronto where they can fully reveal the market value. that it needs to be said, however, that venice was the oscar campaign launch pad. those who have seen open a " black swan -- who have seen open " black swan" do not doubt they have seen a contender. in that case, it has done his job after all. >> do not forget, you can keep up-to-date on all the developments of the day on our website. just go to bbc.com/news.

you will find lots of detailed analysis, including an in-depth look on all the key issues under discussion. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold. get the top stories from around the globe and click to play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, and union bank.

>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> there is one stage that is the met and carnegie hall. >> o, that this too, too solid flesh -- >> it is the kennedy center -- >> check, one, two. >> and a club in austin. [woman vocalizing] >> it is closer than any seat in the house, no matter where you call home. >> ♪ the top of the world, and i'm there, i'm home ♪ >> pbs -- the great american stage that fits in every living room. your support of pbs brings the arts home. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.